10/27/2010

It's been quite a busy year. It seems as if there is something to blog every week but there's never any time with all the performances. Earlier this year I did a performance Modesto and ended up getting on the evening news! Click on the link below to see what aired.

09/09/2010

We also did a gig for the San Francisco Zoo in April and while I worked the kids enjoyed the zoo with Kat. We were also happy that the client requested us to do a pre-show venue inspection a few days before hand as well. I got a chance to experience the zoo with out having to really "work". After we scoped out the performance area we enjoyed the rest of the day off. James and Grace enjoyed the both trips to the zoo. Unfortunately I didn't get top billing as Bert and Ernie were "headlining".

Hi Dan, Everyone absolutely LOVED you! (The adults as well as the kids) We definitely want to have you back next year. I will be on the committee next year as well and will pass on your info to the chair and whoever is in charge of activities as soon as we know who that is. Graduation next year is on June 9th. I think if we would do anything differently, we would move the show to an earlier time...maybe 12:30 or 1am so that it is at the mid-point of the party.

06/18/2010

It's been a blessed and amazing year so far and we're only half way though the year! This month I've enjoyed performing for school show and grad nights. Also It's amazing how the energy of the crowd can build to such an intense level during the performance. I thrive off the energy of the crowd. I've also added a huge cube juggling bit to my practice routine. I'll be adding this to some of our larger shows once the routine is complete. I've also added a climbing into a 6' tall by 6' wide balloon to our show. On a non-work related trips we've taken the kids to the Great America, sailing in the bay, Intel museum, NASA museum and also the Tech Museum of San Jose.

We also did a gig for the San Francisco Zoo in April and while I worked the kids enjoyed the zoo with Kat. We were also happy that the client requested us to do a pre-show venue inspection a few days before hand as well. I got a chance to experience the zoo with out having to really "work". After we scoped out the performance area we enjoyed the rest of the day off. James and Grace enjoyed the both trips to the zoo. Unfortunately I didn't get top billing as Bert and Ernie were "headlining".

In April, we did another gig for the executives at Google. It was quite the experience. This was our third performance for the folks at Google and we really wanted to impress them with something new. Each time we do an event we try to top what we did the last time so this was especially challenging. Kat created the customized balloons below and I custom tailored a few magic effects.

In March I had the opportunity to visit Disney's Club 33. The exclusive atmosphere of the club. Coupled with the fact that I got to sit at Walt's table for lunch made it extra special. This was not your ordinary buffet. In fact it was absolutely the best buffet I've experienced including the one's I've had on cruise ships. It was hard not to over indulge.

Also in March, I spent some time with my friend Ryo Yabe from Japan. We took Ryo to Alcatraz and also to a few museums. He was kind enough to let me experience Cirque Du Soleil's OVO four times. Twice I viewed the show from the the audience's perspective and two more times I watched the show as it progressed back stage. It was amazing to see them relaxing, warming up and practicing back stage. As a performer who likes to see all aspect of performances I especially enjoyed seeing everything going on backstage. I actually had a hard time concentrating watching the TV screens back stage as I there was so much going on.

In February I also performed for Tim Ferriss for a third time, this time on a World War II warship. Kat and I did a Chinese New Year's celebration at Golden Gate Fields.

06/12/2010

Please take time to rate the following from 1-5. ( 1 is very poor and 5 is excellent)Hi Dan,It was a pleasure to work with you yesterday. You were awesome, professional, funny and of course, charmingly full of magic. What I liked best about you and your show is that it is sophisticated and fun. It really was age appropriate, clever and engaging to the audience of diverse size (especially high school graduates). Thanks again, it was wonderful talking to you and I hope that we will be able to work together in the future =)SURVEY:Overall Performance: 5Office Responsiveness: 5Quality of Promotional Materials: 4Easy to work with: 5Value: 10 Audience Response: 5: Sohini and her friends and family really loved the show. Again, it was smart, funny, intellectually stimulating while still being magicalI would def. recommend you to those that are looking for magic entertainment. You were great, professional and your enthusiasm for your craft shows. Thank you also for the list of recommended vendors, it's very helpful and generous for you to share it with me. Thanks so much Dan! As we discussed, it's rare to find people so genuine and good at what they do at the same time, thanks so much for coming again, it was a pleasure!Frances - Booking Agent and ProducerHere's is some of the feedback from clients from the past few magic and balloon gigs:Hello Dan and Kat,We can't even begin to tell you what a success our party was thanks to you!! Kat was truly amazing!!! I had people come up to me after the party and told me that Kat's balloons are the best they had ever seen. Many of our guest would not leave until they received your business card. The only thing I would change if I could do it over again is to hire both of you together. Thank you again for making my daughter's 3rd birthday party extra special. We'll definitely be seeing you again for future parties. It was truly a great pleasure!! This is definitely not the last you'll be hearing from us. There is no doubt that we will be recommending you to our friends and family!!! Thank you Dan and Kat!...you definitely lived up to your name!!!Best Regards,Jaci ChoHi Dan, Everyone absolutely LOVED you! (The adults as well as the kids) We definitely want to have you back next year. I will be on the committee next year as well and will pass on your info to the chair and whoever is in charge of activities as soon as we know who that is. Graduation next year is on June 9th. I think if we would do anything differently, we would move the show to an earlier time...maybe 12:30 or 1am so that it is at the mid-point of the party.Please take time to rate the following from 1-5. ( 1 is very poor and 5 is excellent) Overall Performance---5+Office responsiveness (email, phone and fax) 4+ (This is just as much due to my busy-ness as yours!Quality of Promotional materials (web and video)5Ease to work with5+Value (Cost vs. Services Received)5+++Audience Response 10(OFF the Charts)...like I said they were mesmerized. Many of the kids have said that your show was the best part of our event! (Even the kids who didn't want to come out of the casino at first)- Nancy B - Cupertino High School Grad Night

Thank you for a great magic show for my daughter's birthday party. She loved it and a couple of the kids went home and set up their living rooms as magic shows for their parents! I also want to thank you for letting us reschedule due to illness and death in our family. Overall performance - 5Office Responsiveness - 5Quality of Promotional Materials - 4Easy to Work With - 5Value - 5Audience Response - 4 Yes, we would recommend Dan to our friends. Thank you again for helping make our daughter's party full of laughter! Tony and Lori Adessa

05/07/2010

Above video is a clip from one of the television interviews I've done recently that have appeared in the San Francisco Bay Area. The producer, Jay Hamilton-Roth, is one of the best I've worked with. Check out his website manygoodideas.com�

02/25/2010

Lately I've been thinking about some of the gigs I hate doing and the gigs I really enjoy doing.

Enjoy

1. I especially enjoy enthusiastic audiences that know how to have fun. If it's a kids party it's great when all the parent in the back are just as in awe as the kids in the front row.

2. Client who treat us just like guest, whether it's offering a bottle of water or a meal.

3. Clients who don't abuse your time by starting late. I can usually accommodate and understand a 10-15 minute late start.

4. Clients who are are nice tippers if they can.

5. Clients who are relaxed and ready to have fun.

6. Clients who save parking when the parking is hard to find or other considerations.

7. Clients who know appreciate much hard work, practice is really involved. As my mentor says if it were easier more people would be doing it.

It's clients like those above I enjoy doing a little extra, for whether it's giving extra time or even small upgrades. I really love my job and go the extra mile whenever I can, especially when the clients are great. I can honestly say Phillpino's are the best audiences to work for. They really appreciate good entertainers and are sincerely nice.

Dislike

1. Clients who negotiate forever and worse yet never book the show. If it's a family type event 5-10 minutes asking questions is okay. I seriously have had people waste 30 plus minutes of my time asking questions and not booking. As my friends say, if they're hard to deal with on the phone I can imagine how much harder they are when you meet them in person.

2. I really don't mind discounting for single moms, schools, libraries and non-profits. But I dislike clients who negotiate something small like $25 off, then when you arrive the you notice the Mercedes Benz or Porsche in the driveway in front of the mansion.

3. Audience members who always try to "catch" the magician. Honestly it rarely ever really happens anymore. Audience are entertained and heckle when the are drunk or bored. If you're not making it entertaining they will try to add something that will. A commanding stage presence and professionalism really shining thru usually deters hecklers even before they start.

4. Clients who are supposed to pay the balance on the date of the event and make you wait forever for it. Worse yet clients who never pay and bounce checks. (Armann Qadir)

5. Clients who don't read my allergies and don't warn me that they have cats in the house.

02/14/2010

On Jan 31st, exactly two weeks ago, a reporter from World Journal Chinese Newspaper called me up interview me about my occupation. The editor Lily wanted to know how I got into this occupation. She ended up doing a half page spread on my variety entertainment and magic career. I you want to read the entire article in full click on the link above.

Below are a few images from online and the newspaper itself. Below is the English translation of the article.

What do you consider to be your most impressive trick? Pick-pocketing, Bian Lian & Bullet Catch

Pick pocketing because people are smart and I have to pull it off all the time. I've pick-pocketed lawyers, doctors and even police officers!

Bian Lian I had to travel to Asia, twice to learn this secret.

The bullet catch because there is real danger performing it. 12 people have died performing it.

Which trick do you consider to be the most difficult to perform? Juggling because if you don't practice it every day you will loose what you already can do! Learning two diabolos / chinese yo-yos took many months. Now I'm learning three and it is very time consuming.

How many different magic tricks can you perform? That's a difficult question to answer as I take things in and out of the show regularly. I don't count the number of tricks. I try to polish each one to perfection.

How did you get started in this business? I started by twisting balloons and doing small magic tricks. Now my wife does the balloons and I stick to what I do best the magic.

Houdini was considered the King of Magic. Do you try to model yourself after any great magicians, such as Houdini? I enjoy many magicians too many to number. You can learn from everybody. Most of the people I admire are not well known.

How competitive is it amongst practicing magicians in the business? It is very competitive that's why you don't see many full time magicians like myself. Most people do it part time only and have a day / desk job. I've been doing this over 10 years!

How do you judge the quality of a magician, and what determines success? There are many ways to judge a magicians success. When watching another act my specific criteria is routining, surprise, originality, charisma, comedic element and over all appeal. I judge my success in the fact I have met many people doing what I love and can raise my family. I've travelled all around the world because of our performance. We've performed in Japan 4 times, Baltimore 3 times, Las Vegas, and many other places. My audience really shows appreciation after every show. I have people hire me every year, year after year. That tells me I'm doing it right. I give my clients what they want. If you can perform for a larger crowd more people will know you and possibly book you for entertainment. For example my latest trick I've added to the show is not magic. It's a stunt. Something most audience have never seen before. I stuff myself inside a 6 ft balloon. It's very visually appealing and people can see it on the largest of stages.

How many Chinese magicians do you know in the US? As far I know there are less than a dozen full time Chinese performers.

When you perform the act of catching a bullet, how real is the danger to yourself, and how long have you been practicing this act? I've performed it live five times. The danger is real but we mitigate the danger by precautions. As recently as 2007 a person died performing it, a total of 12 people have died performing it in the history of the trick. Even Houdini himself refused to perform it although he contemplated it.

Compared to many Chinese Americans, your chosen career path is highly unique. How do your parents view you as a magician, and do they support your decision? At first they were very hesitant but they saw that I could make a living at it. My mom tells all her friend and even people she just met that I'm a magician. She now record every television show I'm on and clips out every newspaper and magazine I'm in.

When you perform to high school students and children, do you try to convey a message beyond entertainment? I create custom messages for trade-show and corporate entertainment. For schools and libraries I add an inspirational message to the performance to let people know nothing is impossible.

Where do you see yourself in five to ten years? Perhaps with my own magic theater show or on television more often. I hope to teach my son James and daughter Grace some of my talents